PlayBox Neo announces the completion of a new multichannel playout system for the DDish direct-to-home satellite television network in Mongolia. Based in the national capital, Ulaanbaatar, DDish broadcasts over 150 television international and Mongolian channels via Koreasat 5A, augmented by NVOD, RVOD and SVOD services.

“Our operations run smoothly thanks to the efficiency of PlayBox Neo television channel management systems,” comments Ariunbold Nasanjargal, DDish TV Chief Technical Officer. “They are reliable, versatile and fully compatible with our production, scheduling and playout workflow. Our staff appreciate the extensive automation facilities which allow them to supervise multiple channels while retaining the ability to accommodate new interstitials or changes in program running order if called upon to do so. We can even accommodate live-to-air news. This expansion to our infrastructure will be assigned to three new HD channels and gives us the option of advancing to 4K UHD playout at some point in the future.”

“The solution selected by the DDish team for this project includes a dual Channel-in-a-Box server plus an additional CIAB license and a Multi-Backup Manager,” adds Iulian Ionescu, PlayBox Neo Regional Business Development Director. “The system is configured to provide N:M redundancy. “DDish’s operators are fully experienced in using our systems so were able to proceed without the additional training which we often provide.”

PlayBox Neo Channel-in-a-Box is a turnkey playout server solution designed for broadcasting a single television channel or multiple channels. Available in HD or UHD, it incorporates all the tools required for ingest, scheduling, text manipulation, interactive graphics, playout and content distribution. Remotely accessible tools to enhance preparation, quality control and content monitoring are also included. Output can be SDI or an IP stream. Users include terrestrial and satellite broadcasters, pay-TV service providers, playout centers and satellite network operators.

PlayBox Neo Multi-Backup Manager (MBM) allows a playout system administrator to assign the number of backup systems, such as four backups for 12 on-air channels, reducing overall system cost while maintaining system integrity. MBM monitors user-defined lists with CIAB master and slave applications.

DDish TV provides direct-to-home satellite distribution of multiple television channels, movies and content services throughout Mongolia. Founded in 2008, it also provides services such as VOD and pay-per-view. The Koreasat 5A satellite, launched in 2017, allowed viewers to receive a higher quality signal with a more compact dish antenna.